Uber driver accused of rape did not have city permit

1of 2Uber cab driver Duncan Burton, 57, arrested and charged of sexual assault on a drunk female passenger. According to court documents, Burton performed sexual acts on the woman who he knew was unconscious and unaware and could not provide consent.

An Uber driver accused of raping an unconscious female passenger was never permitted by the city and drove for more than two months after the alleged incident, frustrating city officials who worked for months to bring the company into compliance, only to have Uber skirt local rules.

With the arrest of Duncan E. Burton, who was charged with sexual assault in an incident at his Houston apartment, Uber officials also acknowledged on Monday that many of their drivers do not have a city permit.

The incident drew a strong rebuke from Mayor Annise Parker.

"It is inexcusable that Uber had a driver on the streets and tied to their app who was not registered with the city," Parker said in a statement. "We are consulting with the city Legal Department to determine appropriate action against the company for this oversight."

The charge against Burton is outlined in court documents. A woman said she woke up alone the morning of Jan. 27 in a strange bed she'd never seen before. The night before, she was drinking with two friends in Midtown. Her friends, according to court records, last saw her climbing into the vehicle of an Uber driver.

Uber uses a smartphone app to link interested riders with willing drivers. The drivers work independently, but pay Uber a portion of their fares.

A man in the car with the woman, with Burton driving, told authorities that he was on his way back to the Crown Plaza hotel where he and another friend were staying. The woman was sick and vomiting, so the other passenger found the woman's ID, found her address and left her with Burton, who he asked to take her home.

Burton told police that when he took the woman to the address on her ID, she told him she no longer lived there and that she'd recently moved around the block. When he took her to the next house, a man who answered the door said she did not live there.

Burton told police that he and the woman were unable to determine where she lived, so she asked Burton to let her rest at his home, which he did. There, Burton had sex with the woman, he admitted to police. In the morning he left for work, leaving the woman in his bed.

The woman told police she had no memory of the cab ride, sexual activity or Burton, and said she never consented to the sex.

Robert Scott, Burton's court-appointed attorney, said he is still investigating the allegations. Burton will remain in the Harris County Jail without bail on one charge of sexual assault, a second-degree felony. If convicted, Burton faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.

Uber spokeswoman Debbee Hancock said Burton was removed from the Uber platform - meaning he cannot pick up rides - when officials learned of the arrest on Thursday, the day after he was charged.

Permits required

Critics of Uber have warned of gaps in their safety programs and background check process since Houston officials revised city paid ride ordinances last year. All drivers for transportation network companies must have city-issued permits and comply with the city's background check system.

Permitted drivers display a sticker on the passenger side of their windshield, so any Uber driver without the permit, and an Uber decal, is not in compliance with city rules, which the company lobbied with the regulatory affairs department to fine-tune.

There is no record of Burton applying for or receiving a permit, said Lara Cottingham, deputy assistant director in the city's Regulatory Affairs Department.

Hancock said the laborious city process - which includes an on-site visit so the vehicle can be inspected - has led to some drivers operating without the permit.

"When the city implemented its permitting process, thousands of driver partners were already using the Uber platform to make a living," Hancock said Monday. "We have been working closely with the city to move these drivers through the permitting process as quickly as possible, and every week hundreds of drivers complete the process, but the system is not designed to quickly and efficiently issue permits to a large volume of applicants."

Cottingham agreed demand for the city permit is increasing, though drivers have not complained to the city of being unable to complete the process. When the permit system began, the city increased hours and staffing to handle demand.

Cottingham said the city offered to continue working overtime, but would need to charge Uber for the additional hours. The company declined, Cottingham said.

Permitting center hours will not increase, but enforcement will, officials said Monday.

Since Jan. 1, city inspectors have written 741 citations to Uber drivers for not being permitted or other related infractions, Cottingham said. In many cases, drivers can face multiple citations, which typically are reduced to one when the matter goes to court.

Burton, prior to his removal, was never cited for operating without a permit, indicating city officials did not know he was ferrying passengers.

A trade secret

Burton's lack of proper permitting comes at a time when Houston's paid ride market - specifically the exact number of drivers - is murky. Uber regards the number of drivers a trade secret and has challenged requests made to the city - including two by the Houston Chronicle - to release more information about the number of permits issued and names of drivers.

Uber critics pounced on what they call lax safety standards when Burton's arrest was made public.

"This incident is another in a long line of sexual assaults that demonstrates why Uber drivers should not be exempted from this critical public safety requirement: fingerprinting drivers," said Dave Sutton, spokesman for the Who's Driving Who campaign, an initiative of the Taxicab, Limousine & Paratransit Association, a national cab lobbying group.

Any background check can only go so far. Based on public records, Burton had 14 criminal cases between 1991 and 1997 while living in Charlotte, N.C. Three of those court cases were in North Carolina's superior court system that handles felonies, misdemeanors related to felonies and appeals of misdemeanor cases. All of Burton's superior court matters were filed the same day, Oct. 14, 1997. It was unclear what the outcome was, though his record shows no indication of any incarceration or probation.

Since the matters are more than a decade old, Burton would have passed both the city and Uber's background check process, which check for criminal violations going back 10 and seven years, respectively.

The difference in the two systems is how they verify information. Uber - and its competitor Lyft that left Houston over the regulations - use online background checks that tie identity to Social Security numbers. The companies have said the checks are a better way to delve into criminal and personal information.

Houston uses a state-approved criminal background check that takes fingerprints to confirm identity. The private company that conducts the checks digs further into criminal histories - 10 years - and does a more thorough job of combing data in some cases, city officials have said.